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AI and balance

Debris Field
A downloadable game for Windows and Linux

I've got another update for you!

The primary component of this update is a new and improved AI, enemies will now make an honest attempt to avoid crashing into terrain and each other, as well as keep a bit of distance between themselves and the player. They are also a little better at hitting the player when moving.

I've also done an overall balance pass; enemy health has been reduced overall, to decrease the amount of time you have to spend killing each enemy. However, enemies will still get stronger over time, so that's something to watch out for. I also reduced the top speed of several enemies, in order to help with the new dodge AI.

Other then that, there are just a couple smaller changes:

  • There is now an audio effect that plays when stations are activated, as well as a couple tweaks to other existing sounds.
  • When entering the warpgate, the player will now be pulled towards the center and rotated into position before the level loads, to create a smoother transition into the loading screen.
  • The railgun is now a secondary weapon
  • New secondary: Laser Arc
  • Temporarily removed the missile turret kit, as it isn't working properly.
  • Many bugfixes

Something I've been thinking about is the possibility of changing how enemies spawn. Right now, all enemies spawn near the player and immediately attack, however I have been considering instead making enemies spawn around objectives and stations in the map, and only attack the player when the player gets close. This would put more focus on hunting down enemies, and potentially allow you to take a more strategic approach to the game. I will likely be doing some tests on this front, but I would also like to hear any ideas you might have.


Thanks for your support!

Files

  • debris-field-win-beta.zip 107 MB
    Version 12
  • debris-field-osx-beta.zip 114 MB
    Version 12
  • debris-field-linux-beta.zip 137 MB
    Version 6
  • debris-field-win-demo.zip 71 MB
    Version 13
  • debris-field-osx-demo.zip 77 MB
    Version 13
  • debris-field-linux-demo.zip 97 MB
    Version 6
Download Debris Field
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